When Philip Rivers got a call from the Chargers office last January that a 7-year-old boy in an L.A. hospital was terminally ill and wanted to meet the Chargers quarterback, he dropped everything, got in his car and drove there.

One of the Chargers front office staff said that is just the kind of guy he is.

Family and kids are paramount to the father of six as evidenced by his multifaceted Rivers of Hope Foundation. It matches foster children to potential parents through its Heart Gallery of photos, grants a foster kid’s wish, say, for a musical instrument, prom dress or class ring, through its Something Special Fund, and recognizes foster children’s birthdays. Rivers also runs a football camp, sponsors a 5K Fun Run and partnered with Quentin Jammer to build an athletic field serving foster teens.

Q: In 2010, you and your wife Tiffany started Rivers of Hope. Why?

A: We were on a drive home from Disneyland with the kids and we felt it was God calling us to help those kids that don’t have all those things (our kids have) through no fault of their own. I didn’t know then the vast number of foster children in San Diego. But, as you get to meet some of these kids and see a 6-year-old who has gone from group home to group home and a 10-year-old who has had to change school every three or four months, you realize, if you can help just one child, it’s worth it. That’s how it came about.

Q: Have your efforts paid off? How many kids have you gotten adopted?

A: It’s been way beyond. It’s hard to quantify exactly, but it’s well into the double digits. Under Heart Gallery on our website, it’s heartwarming to click the link and find “family found” under a child’s photo. It’s the ultimate goal to give these kids that forever family. But there are so many other things, like “Something Special” and the “Birthday Club” that let them know someone loves them, and it gives them hope. It’s truly a community effort.

Q: Did any one thing in your own life trigger this commitment?

A: No, it was all things I took for granted: mom and dad tucking me in, sitting around the supper table together, playing in the yard. I thought that’s what every kid does, but that’s not the case.

Q: You meet so many children who need homes, have you been so moved that you wanted to adopt one of them?